Coalition Governments: Lessons from Overseas

January 2000 – December 2001

Sponsor: The Nuffield Foundation

Principal Investigator: Ben Seyd

About the project

The Unit undertook a major review of the way that coalition governments are
formed and operate in various countries overseas. The research was led by Ben
Seyd and funded by the Nuffield Foundation. Over the two years, Ben interviewed
70 policy makers in Denmark, Germany, Ireland and New Zealand, as well as
officials and politicians in the devolved governments in the UK. His aim was to
derive policy lessons for the new coalitions in Scotland and Wales, and to
review the constitutional rules for government formation at Westminster, should
coalitions ever become the norm at this tier. The report analyses the following
issues:

The role of elections

The constitutional rules covering the formation and termination of
governments